This Unreality
by I'm Not Psychotic. I'm Gifted
Summary: An unexpected portal. A new world. A new reality. Surprises from unknown pasts, leading them to unknown futures. When two teenagers find themselves at the arena, will they be able to survive? Kurama x OC, Hiei x OC. Rated for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This introduction isn't something I'm particularly proud of, but I'm posting it anyway, for the convenience of the people who like reading my stories. I ask you, readers, do not judge the entire story based on this one glimpse, and to please read the actual first chapter.

* * *

The sound of laughter rang through the no-longer empty house. Two teenage girls were the cause, disturbing the silence more so by walking up the creeky stairs. Both were lean girls with fair skin, though one had the slightest hint of sun.

"I still can't believe you left that guy your number." said the taller one, chuckling while brushing back strands of her long dark brown hair. Her forest green eyes held a certain amusement, as though there were some joke that only she knew.

"Well, Lea, it's called living. Besides, it's not like he'll even call." The reply came from the shorter girl, whose dirty blonde hair was currently falling into her hazel eyes. They both proceeded to set their purses on the table at the top of the stairs, still smiling and laughing.

"Kylie, knowing you, he probably will." The two chuckled at this. "Can I use your computer? I want to check my e-mail." The blonde nodded and walked down the hallway, followed by her friend. Kylie habitually reached for the knob and, turning it, pushed open the white door. She saw the familiar sight of her bedroom and stepped inside. With a slight scream, she fell through her hard wood floors and disappeared. Lea froze in her spot, simply looking at the place where her friend had previously been.

"Uh, Kylie?" she said towards the floor, "I'll be right back, okay? I'm gonna go see if I can find something to help... somehow." But, as fate would have it, Lea was fairly clutzy, and as she tried to step away, the brunette tripped and fell in the same spot Kylie had, and disappeared.

"Ow!" shouted Kylie as she ungracefully fell onto the soft grass. Her ears were instantly assaulted with screaming and jeering, provided by the massive crowd that surrounded her. Before the blonde was fully able to grasp the situation, her best friend landed just as ungracefully beside her. The two gasped as they looked and realized where they were. The loud mass of demons, the stadium they were in, and the ring staged primarily at the center of it could only mean one thing:

The Dark Tournament.

* * *

A/N: Reviews are appreciated, but I won't try to blackmail you into leaving them.


	2. The Actual Chapter 1

A/N: I realize this chapter is a bit overdue, but my life demands much of my time, and it's a bit difficult to be able to just sit down and write to my heart's content. With that said, I will do my best to not take a month to update each chapter. Thanks to those who reviewed and added the story to their alerts.

* * *

"Holy crap, Lea," the blonde said, "we're in the Dark Tournament. In Yu Yu. It's like my wildest dream has become reality."

"Regardless, I think we need to get out of here before someone sees us and-" Lea was cut off by a slightly high-pitched voice coming over the loud speaker.

"Um, excuse me? There's no teleporting allowed on the field." Both girls froze as all eyes in the stadium turned to stare at them. Koto stood at the center of the ring, hip popped out, a confused and curious look set upon her face. On either side of her were two teams who were too busy glaring at each other to notice the girls.

"Kylie, come on, let's go!" The two proceeded to move towards the only exit in sight hurriedly.

"Hey, those two are _humans!_" With that single cry left hanging in the air, the demons in the stands errupted in noise, no one phrase distinguishable from another. Jumping over the walls, several security officers came running to get them. Lea noticed this and started running, Kylie following suit. They made it through the exit and into the hallway, but were met by the sight of more security standing at the end of it. Slowing down and sighing, the girls walked calmly towards the demons. They were then roughly led to a large room, several human men sitting behind a long table to greet them.

"What are we going to do with them?" one man said.

"Letting us go would be nice..." said Lea. The man glared and hissed at her to be quiet. "It was just a suggestion, jeez."

"We could always just kill them." another man said.

"Let's not be hasty." The man who said that was not seated at the table, but in a chair in the dark corner. When he stood and walked over, it was easy to see that he was far younger than the others. The girls instantly recognized him by his long black hair and business suit.

"Sakyo, what are your thoughts?"

"Until we find out just who these girls are and why they are here, I suggest that we have them assigned to different teams to keep an eye on them when they're not competing. Of course, we'd have to select teams who could control themselves and not kill them."

His statement was left hanging in the air as the other present committee members thought it over.

"We could put one of them to Urameshi's team. The distraction might get them killed." the elder man, said, sneering all the while. The hope of being placed with their favorite team made the girls smile.

"And how about that team of shinobi? Masho, I believe it was. Butajiri could do with an annoyance."

"I agree with both."

"As do I."

"Me, as well."

"Then the girls will go to those teams. Now, what are your names?" He turned and directed the question towards them.

"Lea."

"Kylie."

"Lea will go to Team Urameshi-" Sakyo began, but was cut off. Kylie glared half-heartedly at her best friend, who was busy beaming.

"Bitch." Lea merely chuckled at the remark.

"-and Kylie will go to Team Masho. I'll send someone to inform the teams," he snapped his fingers towards a demon as he said this, "while I ask the girls a little bit more about themselves... in my office."

As the black-haired man moved towards the door, the girls found themselves harshly shoved in the same direction. Though they were about ten feet behind him, Lea and Kylie could overhear what he was telling the would-be messenger. He was to only inform the team captain that something awaited him in Sakyo's office. If so desired, they were permitted to bring a single teammate with them. Although they were unaware of it, the teenagers were thinking the same thing.

_Captains? That means Yusuke and-_

_-Jin. He'll most likely bring Touya-_

_-and Yusuke will probably bring Kuwabara._

_**Ew.**_

* * *

After leaving them with the information, the demon scurried off and out of the room, heading towards his next destination. The team of five shinobi sat there, and puzzled about this news.

"I don' care ta walk inta a trap." Jin said in his thick, Irish accent. "Touya, you'll be goin' with me." The Ice Master nodded and rose from his seat, moving to retrieve his black cloak. Jin did the same and told the rest of the team to stay in the room until they got back. The two shinobi departed the room, moving quickly to the building that housed most of the main offices of the Dark Tournament.

* * *

The demon snickered to himself as he left the suite of Team Urameshi.

"Trap?" the captain voiced.

"Most than likely." the redhead replied.

Yusuke sighed and placed his hands behind his head. "Then I guess we won't go."

"You should." the Masked Fighter said, his sudden and unexpected voice causing Kuwabara to jump.

"Oh, really? And why's that?" said Hiei, joining the conversation.

"Because if it's Sakyo telling you to come, it probably is something important. He wouldn't take away from the fights and bets if he didn't have to."

"And who do you propose should go?" Kurama asked. The Masked Fighter remained silent, however, and promptly left the room.

"Stupid jerk. If he's gonna tell us to go, he should at least have the courage to go with us!" Kuwabara near-shouted in the direction of their unknown comrade. Rolling his eyes, Yusuke stood and headed for the door.

"There isn't an 'us,' Kuwabara. It's just gonna be me."

"Yusuke, I don't think that's a very wise decision. If it does turn out to be a trap, you'd be alone. I'll go with you. There is strength in numbers." Kurama suggested.

"Alright." he shrugged. The redhead walked behind his friend, shutting the door with a soft 'click.'

* * *

"You're asking us to care of a human, when we should be focusing on the Tournament?" questioned Touya.

"The committee has full confidence in your abilities. If not, you wouldn't have been selected for this task." Sakyo replied. "Now, if there are no more questions, I'll have the girl sent in." When the two shinobi before him were silent, he pressed a button and requested that Kylie be sent in.

* * *

The teenagers were sitting on a couch in a seperate waiting room, having already finished Sakyo's questioning process. Lea had asked for some paper to doodle on. The symbols she drew made no sense to their demon guards, but Kylie understood them perfectly.

Long ago, the two had created an alphabet of symbols to write notes to each other. No one else knew what each one meant, and it was going to remain that way.

When Lea was finished writing out her message, she handed the paper over the Kylie, claiming to be bored of doodling. The blonde took it and looked it over, making a few pencil marks to distract from her reading.

_We'll meet at the river that runs through  
__the middle of the island. There's a point where it  
__splits off into two directions. Meet me there at one._

Kylie inconspicuously nodded, putting the pencil to the paper the write out a note of her own when her name was called by a demon who had just entered the room. She shoved the paper quickly into her pocket and handed the pencil to Lea.

"Be safe." she whispered before getting up and heading for the door. The butterflies in her stomach didn't cease as she thought of Jin and Touya and what would soon be their first encounter.

* * *

A/N: Well, that's the first chapter. All you Team Masho lovers have nothing to worry about. The next chapter will feature more of our favorite shinobi. Please leave a review!


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: I suck. I know it. My muse completely left me for this story, but I don't want to leave it unfinished. So here is the overdue-to-the-extreme second chapter. I'm really sorry about this, guys. Thanks to all those who reviewed or added me to your alerts.

When Kylie walked into the room, she could feel the tension floating about. Sakyo had a smirk plastered across his face, and as Jin and Touya turned to look at her, the looks on their faces made it clear that they weren't exactly thrilled to be looking after her. Jin corrected himself and offered a half-hearted smile, while Touya's face revealed almost nothing. He was like Kurama in that way - always calm and collected.

Turning around to look at Sakyo, Touya said, "I don't think our team is the appropriate place for a weak human." Before he could continue, he was scoffed at by Kylie.

"Jeez, Touya. I'm not weak, but I am in the room." The blonde immediately realized her mistake when she saw the puzzled looks being aimed at her.

"How did you know my name?" the Ice Master questioned.

"I, uh, asked a security guy... demon... thing." Her reply seemed to put them temporarily at ease. An awkward silence settled upon the four within the room, but was broken by Sakyo.

"Captain," he began, "will you accept this task as a representative for Team Masho?"

Jin looked Kylie over, taking a moment to think about his decision. The blonde smiled brilliantly and put her thumbs up. The action forced a chuckle from the Wind Master.

"Touya, tha girl's gotta pleasant wind 'round her." Jin turned back toward Sakyo and extended his hand, "Ya got yerself a deal!"

"Excellent." The two shook hands as all three of them stood, "I'll call the hotel and make sure all of the necessary things are brought to your room."

After hearing his statement, a thought suddenly came upon Kylie.

"Wait, wait, wait," she said, "I have to stay in a room with five guys for the entire Tournament?" When Sakyo nodded, she continued, "Oh. Okay. Just checking."

The two shinobi picked up the black cloaks that had been previously resting on the backs of their chairs and put them on. As they exited the room, Kylie's stomach started churning.

_Jin and Touya will be fine, and Gama will probably just ignore me. It's Bakken and Risho that I should avoid. They're both asses, and will probably-_

Kylie was interrupted from her thoughts when, while walking outside, the wind hit her face, and all she could smell were rose petals.

~*~*~*~

It had been almost ten minutes since Kylie had left the room, and Lea was getting a bit fidgety. She was tapping her foot, much to the annoyance of the guards, and was moving the pencil back and forth between her fingers. When the same demon from before came in and called her name, the brunette sighed with relief.

"About time..." she muttered.

The guard not-so-kindly escorted her to Sakyo's office, where she could already hear the sounds of a loud arguement. She instantly recognized the voice as that of Urameshi Yusuke, giving her nerves a bit of a jump.

"We're not taking on some stupid girl who is probably just some stupid trick from the stupid committee to try and get us killed!" he shouted. His statement made Lea laugh.

"Your extensive vocabulary is astounding." She wasn't surprised when Yusuke turned to glare at her, but she wasn't quite expecting a different redhead to be in the other chair.

"Yusuke, she isn't a play by the committee. She's just a normal human. You aren't the only team being assigned a task like this. And as this year's special guests, you get certain special opportunities," Sakyo explained.

While the other two continued arguing, Kurama observed Lea. Her appearance triggered a memory from long ago, one he would have to ask Youko about later. If her long brown hair were a bit darker, her eyes just a bit greener, she could easily resemble-

"No! We're not taking her and that's final!"

"Well, unfortunately, the final decision is not one that will be made by you." The smugness in his tone wasn't received well, but before Yusuke could argue more, Lea attempted to keep everyone peaceful.

"Look, I can tell you don't like me that much, and chances are I won't like you, either. But we're both stuck in this situation. So even though it sucks, why don't we all try and make the best of it, instead of screaming and bitching." When she finished saying this, Yusuke was left with a contemplative look on his face.

"She's right."

The simple phrase, spoken by a very complicated person, near-forced the Spirit Detective to sigh in defeat and admit to it.

"Fine," she said, turning to Lea, "I guess you're coming with us."

Though she didn't show it externally, the brunette was happy and excited. Being with Hiei for an entire tournament?

_Yeah, I can live with that._

~*~*~*~

As they walked along the path toward the hotel, Kylie couldn't figure out why Touya was leaping through the trees instead of walking (or floating, as was the case with Jin) with them.

"He'll warm up to ya soon. Touya's jus' like this when he firs' meets a person." When the Wind Master beamed at her, the blonde couldn't help but smile back.

_Aw, he's just as adorable as I thought he'd be!_

"I certainly hope so." She paused before continuing, "So, how much farther is this hotel we're all staying at?" She already knew the answer to her question, but felt the need to keep up pretenses.

"'Bout another five minutes." Jin replied. Those minutes passed fairly quickly, and sooner than expected, they were in the elevator. The two shinobi had put their cloacks back on, concealing their identities until their match in two days. Kylie felt nervous again as they walked down the hall. When they reached room number 737, the door was already open.

Sitting on the couch in the middle of the living area were Bakken and Risho. Gama was, as predicted, uninterested in the human. The cloaks her escorts were wearing were removed once the door had been successfully closed and locked. The two sitting on the couch rose, walking in separate directions to inadvertently surround her.

Kylie silently rejoiced in the fact that the simple black shirt she was wearing didn't cut too low, as all of the demons in the room were a bit taller than her. Something then occurred to Kylie that, for some reason, hadn't previously.

"Not that these aren't my most comfortable jeans, but what were we going to do about clean clothing? I didn't exactly plan for a long vacation," she said. Risho scoffed at her selective wording.

"_We_? What _we_? How are your problems our problems?"

Kylie turned to Jin, "I was actually asking _you _the question, seeing as you are the team captain." The blonde could feel Risho glaring daggers into her back, but shrugged it off for now. She flinched when Jin's hand shot forward in the direction of her face. When she noticed that his arm was a few inches to the right, she looked and saw Jin holding Risho's wrist in a rather tight grip.

"We don' hit girls. 'Specially ones that are defenseless an' the like," he said in a stern tone.

_Maybe I should ease up on the sarcasm/insulting thing when around demons._

~*~*~*~

The small group of three headed away from the building of offices and toward the hotel. Lea, ever the actress, had asked for a basic rundown of the Tournament and why they were there.

"The committee of the Tournament picks what they call "special guests" each year. It's their way of saying that it isn't optional to come, but mandatory. And we four are the guests this year," Kurama explained.

"You four? But I thought you needed five people to a team."

"We found someone who was just the right amount of crazy to be our fifth member," Yusuke said.

The walk was much faster than had been expected. Walking through the lobby, they received some strange looks, accompanied by people whispering behind their hands. The boys ignored them, having become used to such a reaction. Lea merely rolled her eyes at the ridiculous habits of the so-wealthy-they're-bored types.

A quick elevator ride later, and they were at room number 912. As she expected, the entire team was in the living area, albeit in separate places. The Masked Fighter sat silently on the chair, Kuwabara occupied the couch, and Hiei rested on the windowsill, not bothering to turn and face the rest of them.

The tall, lanky redhead stood and came up to Lea, at first giving her a skeptical look (which she assumed was him getting a feel of her aura) and proceeding to take her hand in between his own.

"Hey, pretty lady. My name's Kuwabara Kazuma."

She tried her best to keep a straight face and shake his hand.

"Lea."

"The sulky one by the window is Hiei," Yusuke pointed as he went, "and the other is the Masked Fighter. We don't really know his name for sure." The brunette nodded in understanding. She looked at the clock in the room and saw that it was now seven o'clock.

_I guess time flies when you fall down a portal, get captured by demons, get separated from your best friend, and realize that you have to spend the Dark Tournament with your childhood crush._

How was she going to occupy six hours of time? There were only so many card games Lea knew...

"We should find you the necessary things for staying in a hotel a bit more long-term than was initially planned." Leave it to Kurama to come up with a plan that would use up some of her time.

~*~*~*~

Kylie had only been in the room for an hour when she began to feel restless. She had gone down to the store within the hotel and procured two spare changes of clothing and toiletries. The blonde had found it rather amusing when the only payment it was necessary to provide was the team owner's name, Butajiri.

For the hundreth time, she looked at the clock sitting at the center of the wall and read that it was a quarter past eight. The sun had completed its descent in the sky previously, and now only the lights from the stars and bright moon lit up the island. Kylie stretched her arms behind her, rolling her head from side to side. She decided to step out onto the balcony, forsaking the ugly furniture provided for the railing that lined the half-circle. Leaning her back against the wall of the building, the blonde let her hazel eyes simply stare off into the stars while she contemplated the new changes to her existence.

Kylie used to lay in bed at night and think about what her life would be like if only she could step into the realm of Yu Yu Hakusho. But now that it was happening, she was unsure of herself and her ability to survive. Would she live out her life here, and never return home? What was going on at home, for that matter? Would she grow too accustomed to temporarily knowing what was going to happen? These questions, along with several others, plagued her mind, and she longed to consult her best friend for answers.

She was pulled from her thoughts when the patio door opened and Touya stepped out. He looked at her, acknowledged her presence, and walked to the center of the railing. A silence passed between them until Kylie broke it.

"Why are you so quiet?"

"Speaking has little purpose when you have nothing to say."

She sighed at his less-than-conversational response and remained quiet for a time again until the urge to strike up a conversation with him rose again.

"You can't possibly have _nothing _to say. Everyone has at least one thing on their mind."

"I speak my mind when people whose thoughts are important to me are present. But I am indifferent to you, so I will not be doing that."

"You're indifferent to me?" she questioned, at least a little bit genuinely hurt. When he nodded, she sighed, "Ouch. Guess I'll go inside so I don't disturb you being indifferent to things."

Her plan worked in theory, but being on a railing seven stories high and moving quickly didn't always mix well. She lost her balance and began to fall off of the balcony when she felt a set of strong arms stop her descent. She turned her face from impending doom and toward her rescuer, who was lifting her off the balcony and setting her on her feet.

She looked him right in the eyes as she said, "You're not indifferent to me. You could have let me fall, but you didn't."

He gave her no audible response, merely stepping away and returning to his previous place. She smiled softly and stepped up beside him, not really minding that he didn't turn to look at her.

"For the record," she began, "I'm not indifferent to you, either." Without pause, she turned and walked back inside.

~*~*~*~

The clock read 9:15, and Lea had since become bored and impatient. Yusuke and Kuwabara had quit playing card games with her almost thirty minutes ago, not simply bored of their repetitive nature, but because she kept winning. Throughout their games, Kurama had merely been observing everyone. But Lea suspected something more was going on behind the scenes.

An uncomfortable silence settled in the room once the two ever-arguing best friends had left. It seemed Kurama and Lea were locked in a stalemate to see who would begin a conversation first. The brunette wanted to go into the room Hiei now occupied and start speaking to him, but knew that such an approach would get her nowhere with the fiery little demon.

"I really dislike awkward silences," she blurted out.

"I couldn't tell," was the simple reply she received. Lea sighed in defeat, realizing that she would have to be the one to bring it up.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Certainly."

"Why do you keep looking at me like that?"

The question halted Kurama in his mental tracks. He was surprised that she had noticed, and embarrassed at allowing himself to have been caught. But none of this reached the outside of the cool mask that rested over the redhead's face.

"How am I looking at you?"

Lea had already come to the conclusion that questioning his behavior would only get her so far (as a person never truly knew more than what Kurama wanted them to know) but hey, she might as well see just how far she could get.

"Like I'm just a piece in a large puzzle that you're trying to solve," she said.

"You've assumed that I have been able to look at what the finished product should be, as is the case with most puzzles. But I myself am merely a piece as well, and therefore, can not determine precisely how all of the pieces will eventually fit together."

Lea would realize an hour later how truly cryptic his response was. For now, she decided not to pry further into the metaphor.

"Well, if you aren't looking at me like a puzzle piece, how would you put it?"

"I would say that you had mistaken my eyes flitting about the room, and occasionally to you, for direct looking."

The brunette rolled her eyes at the subtle hint of vanity and picked up a magazine from the table, focusing her attention on it as best she could.

_That was a close one, fox._

Hearing Hiei's thoughts had become almost as second nature as hearing his own.

_I agree. But it simply adds weight to my theory. Surely you notice the resemblance?_

_ Hn. _Kurama knew that meant, "Yes."

_I'll have to let things play out a bit more, but my suspicions should be confirmed before the final rounds of the tournament._

_ Assuming we live that long._

_ We'll keep a close watch on her actions, but I already see the habits of my sibling from long ago._

A/N: Woo! The plot is thickening. And I promise not to make you guys wait another year before you read about the best friends meeting by the fork in the river.


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: Hey guys. When you begin reading, you'll notice that I've moved to 12:30 A.M. I realize that I'm skipping ahead a bit, but something tells me you'd rather read about the girls traveling and talking, instead of some stupid filler. [Of course, I don't mean that what happened last chapter was filler or anything, but... You get what I mean.] Enough of me rambling. Enjoy the third chapter!

* * *

Kylie had given the casual excuse of exploring the hotel to Jin, who was the last demon awake, garnering her escape to the fork in the river. Thinking of how she could best get away without being detected, she remembered the balcony's view of the entrance to the hotel. The front door option was out. After exiting the elevator, she saw a bell hop standing and waiting to help someone. He was perfectly helpful, and indicated an exit in the back of the hotel that the staff typically used.

She began what she suspected would be a long night, considering the walk through a forest that currently inhabited demons and figuring out the general plan of action for she and her best friend. The blonde gripped the pen in her hand tightly, making sure she wouldn't drop her only real weapon. Confident was hardly how she felt, but a large part of her was still excited by the idea of being in this world.

_Hopefully, I won't die in it.

* * *

_

Lea clicked the button to the elevator, waiting impatiently for it to arrive. She already had what she was going to do in mind, ever the planner of the two. Kurama was, of course, keeping watch over her, and seemed to believe the excuses she gave in order to leave the room. But she knew better than to feel a false sense of security. The brunette kept herself as on guard as she possibly could. Silently relieved that she would be alone in the elevator, (Due to the late hour, no doubt.) she stepped on and looked down at the pen and several sheets of paper she held in her hands. There were too many risk factors involved with simply speaking in the open area, information available to whoever wanted it. No, as tedious as it would become, Lea and Kylie would write out their messages to each other.

The bell hop tipped his hat to her as she exited the building, avoiding their room's view and leaving through the front. She sighed and began walking, hoping luck would be on their sides.

* * *

The moment Kylie had left the room, Touya had walked out of the separate bedroom. The Ice Master had no intention of allowing the girl to go wherever she pleased by herself, but it was more beneficial to let her believe she was alone.

"Don' be doin' anyt'ing I wouldn't do!" Jin added a playful wink to his statement, patting Touya on the back and retreating to his room to get some rest. He trusted Touya's judgement more than his own, and knew that his teammate wouldn't do anything rash.

The blue-haired shinobi simply rolled his eyes at the less-than-subtle innuendo and continued toward the balcony. He looked down at the entrance to the hotel, waiting for Kylie to walk out, but instead saw another girl about her age with long brown hair.

* * *

In what could be called a copycat move, Hiei walked out of the room as soon as Lea had gone. Through silent conversation, Kurama had determined that it would be better and easier for the fire demon to keep tabs on the girl than himself, who felt that his time was best spent in the room.

_Terrific. More babysitting._ Even the thoughts had a particular bite to them.

_Hiei, you know it's what is best._ Glaring at nothing, the demon moved toward their balcony, expecting the girl to leave through the rear of the building. A few minutes later, he was surprised when he saw not Lea, but a girl near to her in age with dirty blonde hair.

Kurama looked up at Hiei's surprise. Before he could make it to the window, the girl was gone into the forest, the smaller demon soon sharing a similar fate.

* * *

"Stupid damn tree..." Kylie muttered to herself. She had been lucky thus far, having not encountered any demons. The friendly tree branches, however, were making up for that lack of annoyance. Judging from the sound of running water, Kylie could tell she was close to her destination.

The blonde saw the break in the trees and moved quickly toward it, tripping herself in the process. She only just caught herself from face-planting into the cool waters of the river. Seeing that she was alone by the fork, Kylie sat herself on a rather large tree root and started to play the waiting game. Fortune on her side, however, the game ended a moment later when her best friend stumbled out of the opposite forest, much in the same fashion as herself.

"You're so graceful, Lea."

"Shut up," Lea responded, laughing. The two friends met in the middle and embraced, eager to discuss their adventure in the making. Kylie opened her mouth to speak, but was quickly silenced by Lea. The brunette felt immature for cupping her hands around her mouth to whisper into Kylie's ear, but thought of it as a necessary precaution. After explaining her system of communication, Lea held up the pen and paper she brought. Instantly, the ink was flowing across the page, each girl writing back and forth frantically.

_WHAT'S HE LIKE!_

_Kurama? Just about as cryptic as I had expected him to be._

_What about Hiei?_

_Just as short._

Their snickers were hushed in the clearing. Kylie and Lea took the time to explain anything and everything that had happened in their separate hotel rooms. The rather large moon had flipped positions in the sky, though neither girl took notice. When a particularly funny joke sent Lea into a fit of giggles, the friends finally fell back and observed the forest surrounding them. The laughing quickly came to a halt when a pair of glowing green eyes came into view. While Kurama's were calm with ancient wisdom, this demon's simply were mad with hunger.

"It's been too long since I've had the delicacy of tender human flesh..." His voice was gruff and sent pits into the two stomachs before him. Lea and Kylie rose to their feet in an instant, the paper tucked into a pocket and the pens now being held as a means of defense.

The demon began to charge, the girls frozen in place. But the closer he got to them, the more pain he seemed to be in. Roughly fifteen feet from them, he stopped completely, clawing at his chest and groaning. The girls were more than a little confused, but kept their guard up instead of falling into a potentially false sense of security. The demon dropped to his knees just as his skin began to glisten over and freeze. Before their eyes, the ugly demon turned into an ice sculpture, his head quickly being sliced off by an unseen force.

Lea turned to face the side of the clearing she had entered on and saw Hiei, wiping off his sword and sheathing it. Kylie did the same, only to spot a cloaked Touya walking toward her.

"Well, I just have to say, guys, that was some great teamwork!" Kylie laughed nervously. Lea joined her in the laughter.

"Really, pat yourselves on the back, you earned it." The blonde couldn't help the chuckle that forced its way to the surface. The demons on either side of the clearing did not even seem to be paying attention to the girls, but were apparently gauging each other. The fire demon was the first to speak.

"I came only for the girl, but I have no qualms with killing strangers who get in my way."

It was the first time either girl had heard him speak. They each turned to Touya, clearly awaiting a repsonse.

"Is it not obvious my sentiments are the same?"

The situation remained tense and awkward for a few moments before Touya simply jerked his head to the side, a clear indicator of his desires. Kylie sighed, glad that Yu Yu Hakusho history wasn't about to rewrite itself with a fight between the demons, but sad that the time spent with her best friend had to come to an end. She turned to Lea and hugged her, bidding her a temporary farewell.

"Be safe," Lea whispered as they were letting go of each other. The brunette began walking to toward Hiei, who wasn't presently as concerned with her as he was with Touya.

* * *

Once Kylie had been within reaching distance, the ice apparition simply grabbed her and flung her over his shoulder. Under normal circumstances, the blonde's pride would have never allowed such a thing, but she was already in trouble. Making that hole deeper would not be the smartest move.

Within a matter of moments, they were back on the balcony of the shinobi room, and Kylie soon found herself landing rather ungracefully on the couch in the living area. To say that the girl was uncomfortable under scrutiny was quite accurate, and that fact was only magnified when three fairly powerful demons were the ones scrutinizing her.

"She's in bed with the enemy," was Risho's statement. Bakken nodded vigorously in agreement, but Jin simply stood with his arms crossed over his chest.

"I'm not in bed with anyone." The defense came out with less conviction than had been intended, but would have to do. Though two others were present, Kylie directed her pleading gaze to Jin, knowing that if any member of Team Masho could save her life at that moment, it would be him.

"Liar!" Bakken's voice held a certain anger and hatred in it, and Kylie found that more than a little unsettling. "She'll be nothing but a burden and try to sabotage-"

"No, she won't," said Touya, his voice as calm and cold as his ice, "We can make sure of it."

_Where the hell did he come from? _She began to look around when the lightbulb suddenly went off. _Oh, right. Ninja._

"She's jus' a lil girl, I'm thinkin' we can handle 'er." Jin seemed slightly amused at the idea of Kylie being too much for them, and it reflected in his voice. Bakken scoffed at the Wind Master and turned to Risho for back-up.

Risho's glare hadn't lessened since the little chat had begun, and Kylie had become highly unnerved by it. He, thankfully, let up on her and turned his gaze to his teammates. He took the short time to bark out orders about watching the blonde and making sure she didn't leave before he retreated to a bedroom. Bakken followed him, but not before spitting on the ground in front of the other two shinobi.

Touya disappeared as quickly as he had come, without sound or word. Jin offered a half-hearted smile before turning to float into a bedroom. Kylie found her legs at last and stood, facing the Wind Master.

"For the record," she said, "I'm not a little girl."

Jin paused and was before her in the blink of an eye, extending his legs and standing. He stood nearly two and a half feet taller than her, dwarfing her in comparison.

"Coulda fooled me." With that, he laughed and smiled, tousling her hair in the process. He flew into his bedroom, leaving her alone with the couch and various bed linens. A grin spread its way across her face.

_Now I see why he has such a big following.

* * *

_

If not for the unmistakable glow of Hiei's eyes flitting through the trees, Lea would have thought that she was walking by herself. The trek back to the hotel took less time than she had anticipated, giving her less time to perfect what she was going to say to the team.

_Not that it would matter. I'm sure Kurama will find a way to twist my words. _She thought back to their previous conversation. _'How all the pieces will eventually fit together.' What does that _mean_? _

They skipped the elevators altogether and jumped straight to the balcony by means of Hiei picking up Lea with not-surprising strength.

"What the hell were you doing?" asked the team captain, his pajamas evidence of him being woken up in the middle of his night's rest. The irritation in his voice was unmistakable, and if Lea didn't already know his character, she would have been slightly intimidated.

"I was-"

"Ratting us out? Making friends with our opponents?" Kuwabara interrupted her, making assumptions.

"No, I was just-"

"Doing exactly what the committee told you to do! Just trying to get us killed, is that what you're saying?" This time it was Yusuke who kept her from finishing (or starting, for that matter) her explanation. Lea gave and exasperated sigh.

"Yusuke," said Kurama, "She hasn't _said _anything, as she keeps being interrupted. Give her a chance to explain herself." At the sound of his calm friend's voice, the detective quieted and waited. Had the brunette been an ordinary person, she might have mistaken Kurama's patience for kindness or leniance, but Lea knew better.

"The girl I was speaking to is my best friend, who happens to be in the same position as me. She's being," Lea paused, searching for the right word, "watched over by a team of shinobi. And since not all demons share your no-kill policy on humans, I wanted to make sure she was okay. She's not your opponent, Kuwabara, and neither of us are trying to get you killed. You shouldn't be so paranoid."

"Be that as it may, it was still a risk to be alone, since, as you have pointed out, the demons on this island don't share our customs," Kurama said, "If you go anywhere in the future, you must have someone accompany you."

The finality in his tone made it clear that he was not in the mood for an argument. So, for perhaps the first time in her life, Lea did not fight against authority or make a sarcastic remark, instead opting to fold her arms and nod.

Kuwabara and Yusuke quickly departed for bed, each muttering to themselves about how annoying they found girls. Hiei flitted off to... well, wherever the hell the fire demon usually went. The two remaining in the room bid each other goodnight and went to their respective beds.

Lea found that sleep would not come to her easily as she tossed and turned, her thoughts keeping her awake. Her concern for Kylie was not a false one, as she knew that only two members of Team Masho wouldn't kill her best friend without a second thought. Lea remembered her home and wondered of the goings-on there, wondered if anyone had realized that something, or someone, was missing. A dreamless sleep reached her some time in the night, but did not afford her much rest.

* * *

A/N: I suck. I'm sorry. I didn't think it would take me this long to write a freaking chapter, but I got MAJOR writer's block. I'm honestly still not content with how this chapter turned out, but I didn't want to keep it from you guys any longer. Fear not, however, as I'm not giving up on this story. I have too many plans for it.


End file.
